We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Kyle Shaw a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Kyle , so great to have you with us and we want to jump right into a really important question. In recent years, it’s become so clear that we’re living through a time where so many folks are lacking self-confidence and self-esteem. So, we’d love to hear about your journey and how you developed your self-confidence and self-esteem.
Its been built through many trials and tribulations. I think there is a common misconception that confidence is something you either have or you don’t have when you are born and I am living proof that is entirely not true. When I was going to high school I was not confident at all and truth be told I did not think I was going to graduate at times, my grades were below average and a lot of people had written me off which hurt my feelings because I felt they never knew me as a person. Its hard to understand how hard it is to take a test when you’re waiting on a phone call to see if your brother made it out of surgery alive if you have never been in that situation. Its hard to understand going to school the next day and putting on a smile when the night before you were helping your mom clean blood out of her hair because she was stabbed with a screwdriver if you have never been put in that situation. But those situations are what molded me as a person and gave me confidence later in life. It taught that I can push through anything as long as I stay connected to God and willing to keep moving forward. You know what happens to a shark when they stop swimming? They Die..
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
On paper I am considered a Actor. But anybody who works in the entertainment industry knows that sometimes you have to wear many hats to establish a solid brand. So with that being said I do everything that is required to be a successful entrepreneur. This lifestyle is a rewarding journey if your willing to take it. It’s definitely not easy at times and your going to be stretched to your limits but it’s in those moments where you find out who you truly are. Everybody is great when everything is going their way but the question is how are you when things are falling apart? Thats the defining moments in the journey I have learned to embrace failure. My brand is built on hard work and being upfront and honest I don’t feel the need to lie to my supporters to make myself above them Im right there with them. I come from a long line of hardworking blue collar workers and I plan to take their energy with me everywhere I go. So with that being said make sure you follow me on Instagram (kyleshaw740) and follow me on this crazy journey.
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
I would say the most important quality is learning at a young age to forever be a student. The more knowledge I possess the more knowledge I realize I don’t possess if your always willing to learn many doors will open up for you. Another one is willing to learn from failure. When you realize the only true failure is quitting, you realize everything else is a lesson to get better and improve upon yourself in this journey of life. The only difference between a blessing and a curse is the way you view it. My third Quality would be trying to stay positive as much as possible. Happiness is a choice and you have to choose to make that decision every morning when you wake up out of your bed. I feel like being optimistic helps overcome many obstacles in life. My advice to people starting on this journey is to keep moving forward at all costs and do not get stuck in the past the best thing about yesterday is that it ended last night.. stay in the present and do the work.
Looking back over the past 12 months or so, what do you think has been your biggest area of improvement or growth?
I would say its being more holistic approaching my craft of being an entertainer. I realize it is important to work on other parts of my life outside of my career to perform better. Ive fallen in love with weightlifting and going to the gym, the way it clears my mind and makes me feel good about myself its truly something I will do for the rest of my life. Which then leads me to diet, your mental health at many times is correlated to what you put in your body so eating is a big thing for me. The way I see it most of us spend a lot of our time living in our head so we might as well make it a good place to live.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.kyleshawofficial.
com - Instagram: kyleshaw740
Image Credits
Linville Photography
Shannon Williams Photography
